Driving means for motor vehicles



iplfig l 119246 C. S. SCHRQEDER DRIVING MEANS EOE MOTOR VEHICLES Filed Nov.

EE. 1921 @sheets-sheet 1 c. s. scHRoEDER DRIVING MEANS FOR MTOR VEHICLES Filed NOV. 28. 1921 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 TF1- lign Y is April 1 1924.

c. s. scHRol-:DER

DRIVING MEANS FOR MOTOR VEHICLES Filed NOV. 28. 1921 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 April 1 1924. 1,488,839

' c. s. SCHROEDER DRIVING MEANS FQR MoToR VEHICLES Filed Nov. 28 1921 4' sheets-sheet 4 IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIL 'Patented Apr. i 1, 1924.

UNITED STATE- s PATENT ori-leafy CHARLES s. scHRoEnEE, or STANFORD, coNNEc'iicUT, Assieivon 'ro THE YALE a mowNE mANUEAcTUnmc-coixrm,ror Semoun, coNNEcTTcUT.

- nmviire MEANs'ron Moron'. vEHicLEs.

Application led November 28, 1921.4 Serial llo. 518,318.

Toall whom it may concern;

Be it known that I, CHARLES S. SGHROEDER, a citizen of the United States, and a/resident of Stamford, in the county of Fairfield and State of Connecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Driving Means for Motor Vehicles; and I do hereby declare the followin tol be a full, clear, and exact description o the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the saine.

This inventionxrelates vto improvements in driving means for motor vehicles and more particularl to an im roved drive unit 16 which sha1 be eminent y adapted for use with industrial trucks,-one object of the .invention being to provide a selfcontained', r

compact and eliicient drive unit which shall have its mechanism so disposed as to make it .pplicable to many various types of ve- .hicles without the necessity 0 specially adapting parts or special arrangement of assembl n A further object is to so construct and arrange the arts of a drive unit as to maintain a minimum of space -occupied byoverlapping gears, differential, etc., and so that the electric motor shall be disposed parallel with the drive axle where it shall project only slightly beyond the diameter of the driving wheels.

A further object is to construct the drive unit in such manner that the motor and gear' centers shall all be held in rigid alignment l35 -when'subjected to severe strain and so that alignment shall not, be changed after the mechanism has been disassembled for re' pairs and `a subsequently re-assembled.

With these and other objects in view, the invention consists in certain novel features of construction and combinations of parts as hereinafter set forth and pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings; Figure 1 is a bottom plan view partly in section; Figure 2 is a longitudinal section view; Figures 3 and 4 are end `vievvs and Figure 5 is a view 'in elevation of the casing partly in section.v

The framework of my improved drive unit includesk a main casing 1, on which the frame or casing 2 of an electric motor is mounted,'-said casing 1 being provided intermediate of its ends with atorque arm 3 (having suitable bracing ribs) and to this 21, a dierential 22 and a driving1 armi, the body of the motor casing is securely bo1t'ed,-the wholev 'of this' structure beingsuitably supportedby the-framework of the truck and 'so disposed that the motor ,will

be parallel with the driving axle Yand so that the structure will project but slightly beyondthe diameter of the Wheels of the truck.

vThe casing 1 is formed at one end with v an enlargement, providing one-member 4 of a gear casing having a machined face 4 around its edge portion, and the other mem-l ber 5 of said casing is also provided with a machined edge face portion 5A so that when the two members of said casing shall haveY been assembled and secured together by bolts 7, the pro er and accurate alignment of the bearings or gearing mounted in said casing will be insured, both when the parts are initially assembled andv when one member of the casing has been removed to facilitate `repairs and then re laced. i

The head 8 of t e motor casing 2 gwhi'ch is securely bolted to the body of thev atter) is vprovided with an enlargement v9 lwhich 4enters a suitable hole -in the gear casing memberI 4 and provides a bearingmember through which the shaft 10 of the motor passes:4 A bearing ringl 11 is located within the enlargement or bearing member 9 and between this rin and a bearing ring 12 on` the shank 10'L o the motor shaft, antifriction balls 13 are located. These ball bearing devices may conveniently be held in by a retaining ring 14 threaded on the s ank of the motor shaft' and entering the enlarge? ment or bearin member 9, and the latter may be 'provid interiorly with a groove 15 lace to -receive packing material. 'The shank of the motor shaft terminates within the gear. casingand has secured thereto, a pinion 16 to which access may be had through an opening 17 inthe casing member 5, said opening being normally closed by a removable cover plate 18.

The casing member 5 is made with a hub portion 19, having seated therein, anti-friction bearing devices 20 for -a .drivingv axle gear 21n thereon,a hub'30 bein provide to enter said bearing devices. eaxle f21 is-housed in the casing 1 and anti-friction bearing devices 20'l are provided for said axle and differential within the housing. One end portion of the drivig axle 21 is connected with one of the Wheels 23 of the truck and the opposite Wheel 24 of the truck is similarly connected with the driving axle. l

At one end ot the unit, a bracket 25 may be made ri id with the casing member 5 so as to provide arms above and below the hub portion 19, rand between these arms, a

knuckle 26 is pivotally mounted for connec-` tion with the Wheel 23. At the opposite end ot the unit, a similar bracket 27 is provided -to receive the pivoted knuckle28 'for the wheel 24 and the two knuckles are rovided with arms 29 for connection with. t e steering mechanism of the truck. i

The driving gear 21n above mentioned, is

located within the member 4 of the. geen casing, and connected throughihe d1iicr'" ential with the driving axle.

The gear casing members 4 and 5 carry ball'bearing devices 31 and 32 respectively,

kfor a short shaft 33 and the gear casing member 5 may be provided with an opening 34 in line with this shaft to facilitate access.

' to the interior of the casing at this point and ,the head 8a (at the opposite end of the motor casing from the head 8.) and said head 8*? is provided with ball-bearing devices .38 for this end portion of the motor shaft. The shank at this end of the motorshaft pro-jects beyond its mounting and has secured thereto, a brake wheel 39. A pin 40 projecting from the motor casing head 8l serves as amounting for brake shoes41 which embrace the brakev wheel and these brake shoes are provided with arms 42 through which a rod 43 passes. Springs 44 located on this rod, bear respectively, against the respective arms. 44 and against adjustable abutments 45 on lsaid rods and serve' to etfeet. application of the brake shoes to the brake lwheel.' A lever' 46 is pivot-ally mounted betweenthe arms of the brake shoes and is cooperable Withthe latter to'in'ove' the same away from the brake Wheel, and said lever 46 may bev connected with a pedal lever 47 for operating it.

My improvements provide in a simple'and compact structure, a drive unit which is particularly adaptable for use w-ith industrial trucks of various types; which shall occupy small space; which may easily be mounted on trucks of diferent types without neces sity for'making extensive ,alterations in the same to receive said unit;'in which proper alignment of the bearings of the rotating parts shall be effectively maintained; and

ation, and easy to control. i

It is evident that the trailer wheels as Well as the driving wheels of a truck may be so mounted as to constitute steering wheels and my improved drive unit is well adaptedfor use with trucks of this type.

which shall be accurate and reliable in oper- Various changes might be made in the details oi' construction of my invention Without departing i'ro'in the spirit thereof or lini- .iting its scope and hence l donot wish to restrict myself to the precise details herein `1. A gear unit of the character described,

comprising a casing adapted to be disposed between the wheels of a truck, said easing having. an enlarged portion at one end, constituting a gear housing, said enlarged portion of the casing including a removable member, a knuckle bracket rigid wi. .i said having its frame rigidly connected therewith, an axle having niountings in said casing` a short shaft mounted in the gear housing portion of the casing, intermeshing gears in said housing portion between said short shaft and the shaft ot the motor, and internieshing vgearing in said housing portion between said short shaft and said axle.

2. A drive unit comprising a main casing provided at one end with an integral gear asing member, a.' removable gear casing menber, a motor having its fra-me rigid with said main casing, a driving axle housed in the m-ain casing, gearing in the gear casing between the driving axle and the shaft ot the motor, a bracket on the removable member of the gear casing, a knuckle pivoted to said bracket for connection with a wheel, and driving means for the wheel connected with the driving axle.

3. A. drive unit comprising a main casing provided at one end with a gear casing, a bracket on a 'part of said gear A casing. a bracket at the opposite end of the main cas ing, knuckles for attachment to wheels, pivoted to the respective brackets, a driving axle housed in the main casing, means for connecting said axle with oppositely disposed wheels, a motor having its frame rigid with said main casing, and gearing in the gear casing, between the shaft of the motor and the driving axle.v

In testimony whereof, I have signed this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses: I

CHARLES S. SHROEDER. `Witnesses:

CARL H. MUELLER, WILLARD M. TAYLOR. 

